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谁有关于邓肯的英文文章,

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谁有关于邓肯的英文文章,
最好是简介类的,
Timothy "Tim" Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976 in Christiansted, St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands)[3] is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 6'11" (2.11 m), 260-pound (118 kg)[4] power forward/center is a four-time NBA champion, a three-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, and the current captain of the Spurs. He has also won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award twice, and has been voted into ten All-Star games, ten All-NBA teams, and ten All-Defensive teams.[1]
Duncan started out as a swimmer and only began playing basketball in ninth grade, and had difficulties adapting. However, he soon became a standout for St. Dunstan’s Episcopal High School, and had an illustrious college career with the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons, winning the Naismith College Player of the Year, USBWA College Player of the Year and John Wooden awards in his final year. Duncan graduated from college before entering the 1997 NBA Draft as the number one pick, and his list of accomplishments and leadership in the Spurs' NBA title runs in 1999, 2003, 2005, and 2007 have led basketball experts to consider him to be one of the greatest power forwards in NBA history.
Off the court, Duncan is known for his quiet and unassuming ways, as well as his active philanthropy. He holds an honors degree in psychology and created the Tim Duncan Foundation to raise general health awareness and fund education and youth sports in various parts of the United States.[5]
In the 1997 NBA Draft, the San Antonio Spurs drafted Duncan with the first draft pick.[1] The Spurs were coming off a poor 1996–97 season; their best player, David Robinson—himself a number one draft pick in 1987—was sidelined for most of the year with an injury, and they had finished with a 20–62 win-loss record.[13] However, as the 1997–98 season approached, the Spurs were considered a notable threat in the NBA. With an experienced center in Robinson and the number one pick in Duncan, the Spurs featured one of the best frontcourts in the league. Duncan and Robinson became known as the "Twin Towers", having earned a reputation for their exceptional defense close to the basket, forcing opponents to take lower percentage shots from outside.[6] From the beginning, Duncan established himself as a quality player: in his second-ever road game, he grabbed 22 rebounds against opposing Chicago Bulls power forward Dennis Rodman, a multiple rebounding champion and NBA Defensive Player of the Year.[14] Later, when Duncan played against opposing Houston Rockets Hall-of-Fame power forward Charles Barkley, Barkley was so impressed he said: "I have seen the future and he wears number 21 [Duncan's jersey number]."[15] In his rookie season, Duncan lived up the expectations of being the number one draft pick, starting in all 82 regular-season games, and averaging 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.5 blocks per game.[1] His defensive contributions ensured that he was elected to the All-Defensive Second Team and was also named NBA Rookie of the Year, having won the NBA Rookie of the Month award every single month that season.[5][16] Spurs coach Gregg Popovich lauded Duncan's mental toughness, stating his rookie's "demeanor was singularly remarkable", Duncan always "put things into perspective" and never got "too upbeat or too depressed."[17] Center Robinson was equally impressed with Duncan: "He's the real thing. I'm proud of his attitude and effort. He gives all the extra effort and work and wants to become a better player."[18]
The Spurs qualified for the 1998 NBA Playoffs as the fifth seed, but Duncan had a bad first half in his first playoff game against the Phoenix Suns, causing Suns coach Danny Ainge to play Duncan with less defensive pressure. The rookie capitalised on this by finishing Game 1 with 32 points and 10 rebounds[19] and recording 32 points and 10 rebounds in Game 2,[20] contributing to a 4–0 sweep of the Suns.[6] However, the Spurs lost in the second round to the eventual Western Conference Champions Utah Jazz.[21] In this series, Duncan was pitted against Hall-of-Fame power forward Karl Malone. Duncan outscored Malone in the first two games which the Spurs lost,[22][23] but as the series progressed, the more experienced Malone shut Duncan down on defense and dominated on offense, outscoring the young power forward in Games 3 to 5 with 10–18,[24] 22–34[25] and 14–24.[26]

Duncan at the free throw lineDuring the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the Spurs started with a lackluster 6–8 record and Popovich came under fire from the press. However, Duncan and Robinson stood behind their coach, and finished the season with a 31–5 run.[27] The sophomore averaged 21.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.5 blocks in the regular season, making both the All-NBA and All-Defense First Teams.[1] In the 1999 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 3–1, swept the Los Angeles Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers 4–0, and defeated the New York Knicks 4–1 in the Finals.[28] In this series, a large contingent of Virgin Islanders flew over to support their local hero,[29] and were not disappointed. In the first two games, the "Twin Towers" outscored their Knicks counterparts Chris Dudley/Larry Johnson with 41 points, 26 rebounds and nine blocks versus five points, 12 rebounds and zero blocks.[29] After a Game 3 loss in which Duncan was held scoreless in the third quarter and committed three turnovers in the last quarter, Duncan rebounded with 28 points and 18 rebounds in a Game 4 win,[29] and in Game 5, the Spurs protected a 78–77 lead seconds from the end with the ball in the Knicks' possession. Double teamed by Duncan and Robinson, Knicks swingman Latrell Sprewell missed a last-second desperation shot,[29] and after closing out the series with a strong 31-point and 9-rebound showing in Game 5, Duncan was named Finals MVP, bringing the first-ever NBA championship to San Antonio.[30]
The accolades for the Spurs soon arrived, with Sports Illustrated reporting that the San Antonio "monkey has been shed", and that the Spurs were no longer known as the "San Antonio softies". The magazine praised Finals MVP Duncan, who was later quoted: "This is incredible. We kept our focus and we pulled it out."[30] Sports Illustrated journalist and retired NBA player Alex English added: "Duncan came up big each time they went to him with that sweet turnaround jumper off the glass. He was the man tonight [in Game 5]." And Popovich later said to losing coach Jeff Van Gundy: "I've got Tim [Duncan] and you don't. That's the difference."[30]
In the 1999–2000 season, Duncan further cemented his reputation. He averaged 23.2 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 blocks per game, earned another pair of All-NBA and All-Defense First Team call-ups, and was MVP of the NBA All-Star Game.[1] However, the Spurs had a disappointing post-season. Duncan injured his meniscus shortly before the end of the regular season and was unable to play in even one post-season game.[5] Consequently, the Spurs were eliminated in the first round of the 2000 NBA Playoffs, losing 1–3 to the Phoenix Suns.[31] Nonetheless, Duncan rebounded in the next season, and with strong regular-season averages of 22.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.3 blocks, earned himself yet another pair of All-NBA and All-Defensive First Team call-ups.[1] In the 2001 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs eliminated the Timberwolves 3–1, defeated the Dallas Mavericks 4–1, but then bowed out against the Lakers led by superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, losing in four straight games.[32] Sports Illustrated described the series as a "[m]erciless mismatch", and Duncan was criticised as "silent when the Spurs need him most".[33]
On the back of two consecutive playoff disappointments, Duncan improved statistically in the 2001–02 season. He averaged career highs in scoring (25.5 points per game, including a league-leading 764 field goals and 560 attempted free throws) and rebounding (12.7 boards per game, and his cumulated 1042 boards again led the league), and also averaged 3.7 assists and 2.5 blocks per game, both personal NBA high scores. Coupled with another pair of All-NBA and All-Defensive First Team call-ups, he was named the league's Most Valuable Player, joining teammate David Robinson as the only Spurs members to earn the honor.[34] On the other hand, Duncan's team struggled with the fact that the aging Robinson was no longer able to sustain his level of performance, and backup center-forward Malik Rose had to step in more often.[6] In the 2002 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs were outmatched by the Lakers. Up against star center O'Neal once more, the Spurs were defeated 1–4 by the eventual champions.[35] Duncan, who managed 34 points and a franchise-high 25 rebounds in Game 5, stated his frustration: "I thought we really had a chance at this series. The Lakers proved to be more than we could handle. Again, we had a (heck) of a run at it. We had opportunities to win games and make it a different series, but that's just the way the ball rolls sometimes."[36] Nevertheless, NBA.com praised Duncan as "phenomenal" and criticised his supporting cast, stating Duncan "made 11-of-23 shots and 12-of-14 free throws, adding four assists and two blocks [a]nd once again, he did not have enough help."[36] Also, Robinson said "Tim [Duncan] was like Superman out there", and conceded that the Lakers were simply better, just like in the last playoffs campaign.[36]